# CVE-2023-45322: Use after free in n/a > A use-after-free in libxml2 can cause a denial of service when memory allocation fails, though exploitation is difficult. - **Severity:** Medium 6.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`) - **Exploited in the wild:** Not known - **Login needed:** Not needed - **Attackable:** Over the internet - **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something - **Fix available:** Yes - **Published:** 6 Oct 2023 - **Updated:** 14 Oct 2026 - **Also known as:** AZL-31272, AZL-34960, BELL-CVE-2023-45322, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-45322, ECHO-86f2-08fd-b895, GHSA-vqpg-m25j-7558, MGASA-2023-0298, OESA-2023-1742, SUSE-SU-2023:4464-1, SUSE-SU-2023:4504-1, SUSE-SU-2023:4505-1, SUSE-SU-2023:4537-1, openSUSE-SU-2024:13426-1 ## What is CVE-2023-45322? CVE-2023-45322 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Xmlsoft Libxml2, published on 6 Oct 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link. ### Official description libxml2 through 2.11.5 has a use-after-free that can only occur after a certain memory allocation fails. This occurs in xmlUnlinkNode in tree.c. NOTE: the vendor's position is "I don't think these issues are critical enough to warrant a CVE ID ... because an attacker typically can't control when memory allocations fail." Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free) ## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-45322? It affects 1 product. | Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.1 | All versions | 2.9.7-150000.3.63.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.2 | All versions | 2.9.7-150000.3.63.1 | | `python-libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.2 | All versions | 2.9.7-150000.3.63.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Python 3 15 SP4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Python 3 15 SP5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5 | All versions | 2.9.4-46.68.2 | | `python-libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5 | All versions | 2.9.4-46.68.2 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP5 | All versions | 2.9.4-46.68.2 | | `python-libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP5 | All versions | 2.9.4-46.68.2 | | `libxml2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Software Development Kit 12 SP5 | All versions | 2.9.4-46.68.2 | | `libxml2` | openSUSE:Leap 15.4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | openSUSE:Leap 15.4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `python-libxml2-python` | openSUSE:Leap 15.4 | All versions | 2.9.7-150000.3.63.1 | | `libxml2` | openSUSE:Leap 15.5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `libxml2-python` | openSUSE:Leap 15.5 | All versions | 2.10.3-150500.5.11.1 | | `python-libxml2-python` | openSUSE:Leap 15.5 | All versions | 2.9.7-150000.3.63.1 | | `libxml2` | openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.3 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.3 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2` | openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2-python` | openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.4 | All versions | 2.9.14-150400.5.25.1 | | `libxml2` | openSUSE:Tumbleweed | All versions | 2.11.5-2.1 | Products: Xmlsoft Libxml2. ## How do I fix CVE-2023-45322? Apply the vendor's patch. ## Is CVE-2023-45322 being exploited? There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-45322 in the wild and no public exploit code. ## Other vulnerabilities in Xmlsoft Libxml2 - [CVE-2017-16931](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16931/): XML external entity in n/a (critical 9.8) - [CVE-2017-8872](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8872/): Information disclosure in n/a (critical 9.1) - [CVE-2022-49043](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-49043/): Use after free in libxml2 (high 8.1) - [CVE-2026-86140](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-86140/): Memory corruption in libxml2 (high 8.0) - [CVE-2024-34459](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-34459/): Memory corruption in n/a (high 7.5) ## Fix prompt for AI coding agents ```text Check this codebase for CVE-2023-45322 and fix it if it is affected. What it is: CVE-2023-45322 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Xmlsoft Libxml2, published on 6 Oct 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link. Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-45322 in the wild and no public exploit code. Affected product: Xmlsoft Libxml2. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page. Task: 1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies. 2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it. 3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead. 4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why. 5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing. Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45322/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45322/index.md) ``` ## Sources - CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-45322 - NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-45322 - OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-45322 --- From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45322/ Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.